Blog on the Lillypad
Friday, September 03, 2004
 | From a Reader of VALKYRIES:
"I was very taken by Valkyries. As a matter of fact I read both [volumes] in 2 days. My wife...has been reading Vol 1...and is about 300 pages into it. Thank you for your work. It is so refreshing to find some contemporary fiction that has content and good theology and is therefore worth reading. As I noted earlier, when we are done reading them I will be passing the books on to the teenage daughters of some good friends of ours." |
For readers who are not familiar with VALKYRIES, the ad spaces for both volumes follow:
| VALKYRIES: Some Through the Fire by Jeri Massi.
Tracey Jacamuzzi, an eighth grader in the local Catholic school, wanders into a tent meeting and hears the Gospel. After she comes to Christ, she is sent away to a boarding scool by her abusive father. At the school, Tracey is initiated with a brutal hazing from a ring of school bullies known as the "Deep Six." But as she continues to resist them, she is befriended by the school's star basketball player, Liz Lukas, who warns Tracey not to preach religion at her. Liz teaches Tracey to play basketball, and Tracey---still strugglng to understand why God has done these things to her---finds herself a rising star on the basketball team. Peopled with real and believable characters, VALKYRIES presents no cliches and no easy answers. The characters are complex and realistic, and the issues of faith and grace that Tracey confronts speak to all Christians about their own doubts and struggles. In Volume One, Valkyries: Some Through the Fire, the story sets up the most pressing questions that all Christians must address about why God brings tragedy and suffering into their lives. At the same time, the book provides a fast-paced, lively story that rings with both sorrow and hilarity. |
| VALKYRIES: All Through the Blood by Jeri Massi.
The second novel in the series continues Tracey's journey in her faith. Though beset by her own failings and often doubting the goodness of God, Tracey continues to rise as a star basketball player. With the addition of new friends to the team, Tracey finds a nitch for herself. But the struggle of her faith continues as she encounters the divorce of her parents and the death of a friend. Now under the guidance of a Christian Evangelical woman who is a graduate of the school, Tracey bgins to find the answers for which she has searched. As she begins to understand the Grace of God, her own life changes. The pace of the book picks up even greater speed as the team prepares for the championships. Established characters leave the story and new characters enter. As it continues with both stark drama and vivid comedy, the narrative of Valkyries: All Through the Blood pulls the reader into a true account of Grace at work in us. Told in a transparent, honest and direct style that mirrors the hard driving action of a basketball game, this book depicts the real victory of God's Grace in justifying and sanctifying sinners. |
